Only U.S. harmonica company to close Rockford facility

Colleen MastonyTribune reporter

Harrison Harmonicas, a small Rockford-based company that last year opened the only harmonica production facility in the United States, is closing.

The company on Thursday sent out an email to customers explaining that another company, as yet unnamed, had purchased the rights to produce the B-Radical harmonica, an innovative instrument created by the company’s founder, Brad Harrison.

The company had marketed the B-Radical as the Steinway of harmonicas and targeted professional players who have long complained about the inconsistent quality of standard, mass-produced instruments.

Harrison told the Tribune in 2010 that he hoped to produce thousands of instruments and create jobs in Illinois.

But in the email sent to customers Thursday, he explained that production turned out to be more expensive than he anticipated. He said another company had agreed to continue producing the B-Radical and to fill the backlog of orders.